Starting Off On a Bright Note

I'm a pretty much pessimistic kind of person.

I know that's a shocker. I'm not only a "Glass half full" kind of gal, I'm a "Glass half full of battery acid" kind of gal. The past two weeks have been one thing after another after another, and today, I was determined to make sure that I started the week on a better note.

So I decided to do an experiment.

I sent text messages out to an entire group of people. It was a positive, uplifting message - one that I hoped would help the recepient start THEIR day off in a great way.

And who doesn't need a positive start on a MONDAY??

I wanted to see if a) I would get anything back from those I "positived" and b) did my mood in general improve. I got some really nice responses back -and hope that those people were able to pass on the positivity. I had a fabulous text conversation with my step daughter, a wonderful young woman with whom I had a rocky start and who has come amazingly far. I am very proud of her, and don't remember to tell her that as often as I should.

I forget to appreciate people. I tried to do a better job of it today.

It did improve my mood, for the most part.

Until the stomach flu hit again tonight.

But it was great while it lasted, and I think I'm going to try to make it a habit to "positive" those people around me.

Yes, yes, yes! I love this! I have always been a pessimistic at heart, but I try so hard to turn that around. My favorite things to do when I am feeling pessimistic are sing and jump up and down. Since I can't sing, and jumping is just goofy, it always makes me feel a little silly just long enough to turn my thoughts around. I will definitely try this technique as well. Stay positive!

Oprah on Keeping Gratitude Journal
Since 1996 after having Sarah Ban Banatha on her show, Oprah has become one of the biggest and most vocal advocates of the benefits of keeping a Gratitude Journal.

Keep a grateful journal.
Every night, list five things that you are grateful for.
What it will begin to do
is change our perspective of your day and your life.

Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey on Journaling
Journaling is someone to talk to when there is no one to talk to.

Oprah
Sarah Ban Breathnach on Oprah.com
In March of 1996, Oprah invited Sarah Ban Breathnach to her show. Her book Simple Abundance inspired Oprah to start a gratitude journal.
Inside Personal Journals
From Oprah information on people who changed their lives by journaling. Includes tips for starting your own journal.

When I was a child (oldest of 5) my mother made up the "Compliment Club" (CC) . . everyone had a challenge each day to find a compliment or something pleasant to another person, inside or out of the family. We understood early on that compliments were more than an appreciation of someone's new hairband or the other obvious things that come to mind, as well as coming to recognize that even if we had to be, um, really creative to think of something positive to say, one can do it without hypocrisy. Worth the effort. I think I'll tell my own aging children about it later; I'd forgotten it for years!

One thing we do at dinner each night is say our favorite part of the day. Even when hubby is away on business we still have dinner and discuss. I know your evenings are little crazier than mine since I don't have teenagers just yet. YET! So close.....I'm scared. Anyway, it's a great way to see the beauty in the every day small stuff. :)

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About Me

Carmen Staicer is a whirlwind of energy and execution, who never sleeps and drinks way too much coffee. She works from home as Social Media Programs Manager for SheKnows, and is the mom to six kids, most of whom play instruments, sing or dance and all of whom are much smarter than she will ever be. In other words, her house is never ever quiet or still. A concentration of asthma, food allergies, spectrum disorders and learning disabilities means that she spends an awful lot of time second guessing herself and Dr. Googling, as well as learning to cook everything the family might like to eat. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, boxing (she has her Black Belt in Muay Thai), sleeping, exploring coffee shops, photography, ballet class and cooking. She excels in being a smart mouth and has her major in sarcasm, with a dual minor in BS studies and avoiding laundry.